Method and apparatus for calibrating seeders

ABSTRACT

A calibration device for calibrating a metering system that dispenses a product to a seeder towed by a farm vehicle is provided for obtaining and maintaining a desired rate of delivery of the product from the seeder. The calibration device includes a first console port positioned at or near the farm vehicle and a second console port at or near the metering system, each operative to receive at least one a calibration console for calibrating the rate of product delivery and adjust the metering system accordingly.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a method and apparatus forcalibrating a metering system for dispensing a product such as seed,fertilizer, and the like from a seeder such as an air seeder at adesired rate.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Grain drills or seeders such as air seeders for crop farming aretypically mounted on a trailer towed behind a tractor or other farmingmachinery. An air seeder generally comprises a toolbar having groundopeners mounted thereon for receiving and delivering seed and/orseed/soil supplement product such as fertilizer into or on the ground.The seeder may include at least one seed and/or seed/soil supplementproduct frame-mounted hopper or tank for storing seed and/or supplementproduct in granular form to be planted or spread over farmland. In thealternative, a separate product dispensing cart (e.g., an air cart) canbe towed behind the seeder for holding and dispensing product to theseeding tools of the seeder. Supplement product includes, but is notlimited to, fertilizer, inoculants, herbicide, etc. The seed andsupplement product will generally be referred to herein as product.

Air seeders typically employ a metering system for dispensing productfrom the hopper and a pneumatic distribution system for delivering themetered product to the soil. Air seeders that can separately meter seedand supplement product are available having distribution systems thatcan apply both seed and supplement product such as fertilizersimultaneously to a field.

A metering system for an air seeder generally includes a volumetricmeter that may be geared to the wheels of the air seeder trailer orproduct dispensing cart as known in the art to dispense a fixed volumeof product per unit of linear distance traveled by the air seeder. Avolumetric meter typically includes either augers or a fluted cylinder(meter roller) mounted at the bottom of the hopper, product from thehopper filling the interstitial spaces thereon. Rotating the volumetricmeter against a screed measures out the granular product in units ofinterstitial volumes. Thereafter, the product so dispensed is allowed toenter the pneumatic distribution system. Thus, the volumetric meter isdriven by a ground wheel such that the meter turns proportionally to theground wheel and the rate of delivery of product will remain constantregardless of the speed of the seeder.

The pneumatic distribution system generally utilizes air under pressureto provide at least one air stream that flows through the pneumaticdistribution system and carries the product to be deposited in the soil,typically by seed boots. Product dispensed by the metering system isfirst introduced into the air stream at a primary distribution manifold.Fluidized product is carried under air pressure by primary distributionlines to a group of secondary distribution manifolds (“headers”), whichin turn distribute product through secondary distribution lines toindividual seed boots mounted behind ground openers on the tillingimplement. The metering of the product dispensed may evenly deliver theproduct along a furrow made by a corresponding opener of the tillingequipment.

Seeding at the proper rate and desired depth are essential for obtainingmaximum yield of crop. However, the size of seed and supplement productwill vary between varieties and even the size of seed of the samevariety may vary from one year to the next. This requires that a seedermetering system be calibrated so that the correct amount of seed isplanted. Because most metering systems are based on a volumedisplacement, if one lot of seed varies in size and weight from another,two different amounts or number of seeds will be metered if the metersettings are not changed.

Air seeder manufacturers generally include a calibration method in theiroperator's manual. Such calibration generally requires collecting a unitof product from each meter and weighing the unit of product. This isroutinely done when the seeder is stationary by providing a handle orcrank for rotating the volumetric meter against the screed a givennumber of times for a particular area and then collecting the productdispensed in a bag, pail, catch box or the like. Such crank can be handoperated or operate using an electric or hydraulic motor. The number ofturns of the meter is generally determined by a sensor located at themeter. The collected product is then weighed using a scale. The averageproduct per square foot or product per lineal foot is then calculatedand the metering system is set accordingly. An example of a seedercalibration apparatus and method that uses a hydraulic motor isdescribed in Canadian Patent No. 2,311,698, incorporated herein byreference.

Most seeders are equipped with a calibration console (monitor/control)having an input device (e.g., key pad) for inputting data such as theweight of the unit of product collected and a microprocessor that willautomatically perform the calculations for each metered product andprovide the operator with the product application rate (weight ofproduct dispensed per unit of area covered by the seeder). The meteringsystem can then be adjusted accordingly to vary the rate of delivery ofa product to be dispensed. Unfortunately, such calibration consoles areonly located in the cab of the tractor. It is not uncommon for anoperator to have to calibrate a metering system more than once during agiven operation. Furthermore, if dispensing more than one product, suchcalibrations must be done for each metered product.

Thus, depending upon the number of times an operator is required tocalibrate a particular product and the number of individual productsbeing dispensed in a given operation, the operator may need to makeseveral trips to the tractor cab from the seed cart where the meteringsystem is located while remembering the exact weight of the calibratedproduct. This is very time consuming and leaves a potential for errors.Some of the products to be applied are expensive and thus an error inapplication rate can be very costly.

Therefore, there is a need in the crop farming industry for a method andapparatus for calibrating a metering system that is convenient for theoperator and provides less room for operator error.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one aspect of the application, a calibration devicefor calibrating a metering system that dispenses a product to a seedertowed by a farm vehicle to obtain and maintain a desired rate ofdelivery of the product from the seeder is provided, comprising:

-   -   an electrical harness that electrically connects the farm        vehicle, the seeder and the metering system, said electrical        harness having a first console port at a first position, the        first position at or near the farm vehicle and a second console        port located a second position, the second position at or near        the metering system; and    -   at least one a calibration console having an input device and        operative to calculate the rate of delivery of the product based        on the weight of a unit of product;    -   whereby the at least one calibration console can be plugged into        the second console port when the weight of the unit of product        is being measured and inputted into the calibration console via        the input device to calibrate the rate of product delivery and        adjust the metering system accordingly and/or can be plugged        into the first port when operating the farm vehicle to ensure        the rate of product delivery is maintained during seeding.        In one embodiment, the calibration device comprises two        calibration consoles, one plugged into the first port and one        plugged into the second port. In another embodiment, only one        calibration console is provided which can be moved by the        operator to the first console port or the second console port        accordingly.

In accordance with another aspect of the present application, anapparatus for calibrating a metering system for dispensing a desiredvolume of at least one product to a seeder towed by a farm vehicle forapplication of the product from the seeder in or on the ground, saidmetering system comprising at least one rotatable meter having a meterroller attached to a meter drive shaft to rotate the meter in relationto the distance traveled, is provide, comprising:

-   -   a calibration console having an input device and a        microprocessor located at or near the metering system;    -   a means for rotating the rotatable meter to dispense a weight of        product from the meter;    -   a container for collecting the weight of product, said weight of        product to be measured by an operator of the apparatus and        inputted into the calibration console by the operator; and    -   a first sensor operative to determine the number of rotations of        the rotatable meter required to dispense the weight of product        and operatively connected to the calibration console to input        the number of rotations into the calibration console;        whereby when the weight of the product is entered into the        calibration console the microprocessor calculates the dispensing        rate of the product, being weight of product dispensed per        rotation of the rotatable meter.

In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises:

-   -   a second sensor operative to measure a distance traveled by the        seeder and operatively connected to the calibration console to        input the distance traveled into the calibration console;        whereby, in addition to calculating the dispensing rate of the        product, the microprocessor calculates the application rate of        the product, being the weight of the product dispensed per unit        of area covered by the seeder.

In accordance with another aspect of the present application, a methodfor an operator to conveniently calibrate a metering system thatdispenses a product to a seeder towed by a farm vehicle for applicationof the product from the seeder into or on the ground is provided,comprising:

-   -   providing in a first position a calibration console having an        input device and a microprocessor operative to calculate the        dispensing rate and application rate of the product based on the        weight of a unit of product, the first position at or near the        metering system;    -   calibrating the meter system by:        -   for each of the at least one product, dispensing the unit of            the product from the metering system into a container and            weighing the unit of product dispensed; and        -   inputting the weight of the unit of product into the            calibration console located at the first position using the            input device and calculating the dispensing rate of the            product or the application rate of the product or both.

The ability to enter the weight of the unit of product dispensed by aparticular meter directly to a calibration console located near themetering system will allow the operator to quickly and efficientlydetermine the appropriate setting of the metering system to obtain thenecessary number of rotations of the meter necessary to dispense thefixed volume (weight) of product per unit of linear distance traveled bythe seeder. Other advantages may be derived from the quick turnaroundtime in setting the metering system, in particular when more than onemeter is being used to dispense more that one product.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and advantages of the invention will become more apparentfrom the following detailed description of the embodiment with referenceto the attached diagrams wherein:

FIG. 1 is an electrical overview of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows an electrical harness of an embodiment of the invention;and

FIG. 3 a is a front perspective view of a meter commonly found in ametering system for metering granular product having a meter roller anda primary distribution manifold;

FIG. 3 b is a side view of the meter shown in FIG. 3 a;

FIG. 4 shows an electrical overview of another embodiment of theinvention; and

FIG. 5 shows an electrical harness of the other embodiment of theinvention.

It will be noted that in the attached diagrams like features bearsimilar labels.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appendeddrawings is intended as a description of various embodiments of thepresent invention and is not intended to represent the only embodimentscontemplated by the inventors. The detailed description includesspecific details for the purpose of providing a comprehensiveunderstanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent tothose skilled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout these specific details.

FIG. 1 is an electrical overview of an embodiment of the invention. FIG.1 shows tractor 21 and calibration console position 1 located in the cabof tractor 21. Tractor 21 tows toolbar 23, which toolbar may comprise aplurality of individual ground openers (not shown), collectivelyreferred to herein as a seeder. The seeder in turn tows air cart 25,which air cart comprises a metering system having at least one meter,for example, as shown in FIG. 3 a and as described in more detail below.Air cart 25 further comprises at least one tank or hopper (not shown)for carrying at least one product such as seed or fertilizer.

As can be seen in FIG. 1, console position 1 is electrically connectedto console position 2 by electrical harness 24, which may comprisetractor harness 26, toolbar harness 30 and air cart harness 34. Thedistance between the air cart 25 and the tractor 21 can be anywhere from40-50 feet or more and thus the distance an operator must travel betweenthe air cart and tractor cab is significant, in particular whencalibrating a metering system comprising more that one meter.

With reference now to FIG. 2, an embodiment of the invention is shown inmore detail. Calibration console 22 comprises input pad 31, screen 33and an internal microprocessor which can be calibrated and then used tomonitor the feed rate and/or dispensing rate of the product. In oneembodiment, the calibration console 22 can also be used to adjust thefeed rate of the product. As previously mentioned, electrical harness 24may comprise tractor harness 26, toolbar harness 30 and air cart harness34, whereby tractor harness 26 is attached to toolbar harness 30 viatractor hitch junction 28 and toolbar harness 30 is attached to air cartharness 34 via air cart junction 34. At the tractor end of electronicharness 24 is console port 1 (36) and at the air cart (or meteringsystem) end of electronic harness 24 is console port 2 (38). Thus,calibration console 22 can be moved to either position.

Attached to air cart harness 34 is at least one meter rotation sensor120, the number of meter rotation sensors corresponding to the number ofmeters there are in the metering system. As will be explained in moredetail below, meter rotation sensor 120 senses the number of rotationsof each meter that is rotated during metering calibration. The meter maybe rotated via a meter roller shaft that is either manually rotated bymeans of a crank or hydraulically or electrically rotated as is known inthe art. Thus, meter rotation sensor 120 is operably connected tocalibration console 22 having a microprocessor so that the number ofrotations of the rotatable meter needed to dispense a particular weight(or unit) of product is automatically inputted into the calibrationconsole.

In some embodiments, a second sensor is provided, ground sensor 170. Inone embodiment, ground sensor 170 senses the distance traveled by aground wheel by sensing the number of rotations of the wheel andinputting the data into the calibration console, which converts thenumber of wheel rotations into distance and then acres or hectares,which accounts for the width of the seeder. Thus, the calibrationconsole can also calibrate the weight of product dispensed per lineardistance traveled by the seeder to give an application rate in lbs or kgper acre or hectare of land when taking into account the overall widthof the seeder. In the alternative, a radar sensor as known in the artcan be used to determine distance.

An example of a metering system comprising at least one meter 10 for usewith air seeders for dispensing product from at least one product tankor hopper for delivery to the soil is shown in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b. The atleast one meter and at least one hopper can be located directly on theair seeder or can be towed behind an air seeder on an air cart as shownin FIG. 1. Air seeders that can separately deliver two products, forexample, seed and fertilizer, generally employ a primary pneumaticdistribution system 160, as shown in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b, which maydeliver metered seed and fertilizer separately from separate producttanks or hoppers 140 through one of two sets of primary distributionlines 162, 164. This arrangement is commonly referred to as a “doubleshoot” and allows for both products to be simultaneously, butseparately, applied to a field.

Alternatively, it is understood that a metering system may also comprisea primary pneumatic distribution system of a “single shoot”configuration, where only one product tank or hopper is involved andonly one set of primary distribution lines is needed.

With reference now to FIGS. 3 a and 3 b, meter 10 includes volumetricmeter roller 100 which may be geared to the wheels of the air seedertrailer or, if carried on a separate product dispensing cart, to thewheels of the cart, and can be set to dispense a fixed volume of productper unit of linear distance traveled by the air seeder. In theembodiment shown in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b, meter 10 comprises volumetricmeter roller 100 having an axial bore therethrough. Meter drive shaft108, having roller sprocket 109 at one end, is inserted into the axialbore and when meter roller 100 is inserted through aperture 110 andmounted at the bottom of hopper 140, roller sprocket 109 meshes withagitator sprocket 112. Agitator sprocket 112 is attached to the end ofagitator shaft 114 and in this embodiment is geared to the wheels ofeither the air seeder trailer or product dispensing cart (not shown).

Meter 10 further comprises meter rotation sensor 120 which actuallysenses the number of rotations of the meter drive shaft 108 by sensingsensor sprocket 111, which is attached to shaft 108, and hence sensesthe number of rotations of meter roller 100. Meter 10 may also comprisea means for rotating the meter drive shaft 108 such as a crank or handle(not shown) which can be used to manually turn the meter drive shaft 108to dispense a unit of product from the hopper for collection in acontainer such as a pan or bag (generally located below the meterroller) so that the unit of product can be weighed in order for theoperator to ultimately calibrate the number of rotations needed todispense X lbs (or kg) of product per acre (or hectare) of land to beseeded.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are overviews of another embodiment of the invention. Atractor 121 is shown towing a tool bar 123, which may comprise aplurality of ground openers (not shown), collectively referred to as aseeder. Towed behind the tool bar 123 is an air cart 125 for providingat least one product, such as seed and/or fertilizer, to the tool bar123. The air cart 125 has a metering system having at least one meter,such as the metering system shown in FIG. 3 a.

A calibration console 122 is provided comprising an input pad 131 and ascreen 133. The calibration console 122 is provided in a first positionat or near the air cart 125 and the metering system. The calibrationconsole 122 can be used to calibrate the metering system, setting thefeed rate and/or dispensing rate of the product, at or near the meteringsystem where the calibration console 122 is positioned.

A monitoring console 140 having a display 140 can also be provided at asecond position at or near the tractor 121 and in one embodiment, themonitoring console 140 can be provided in a cab of the tractor 121. Themonitoring console 140 can allow a user operating the tractor 121 tomonitor the feed rate and/or dispensing rate of the product; typicallyby displaying the feed rate and/or dispensing rate of the product on thedisplay 142 of the monitoring console 140. The monitoring console 140can also allow the operator to control a number of other functionsrelated to the monitoring and/or control of the seeder. In a furtherembodiment, the monitoring console 140 can allow an operator to adjustthe feed rate and/or dispensing rate of the product from the cab of thetractor 121, even while the seeder is in use dispending product. In oneembodiment, the monitoring console 140 may have all the functionality ofthe calibration console 122 and in addition, provide a number ofadditional functions related to monitoring and/or controlling theoperation of an air seeder. In another embodiment, the monitoringconsole 140 may not have the functionality of the calibration console122, requiring the user to calibrate the metering system using thecalibration console 122, but can allow the user to monitor and/orcontrol the rest of the operation of the air seeder using the monitoringconsole 140.

In one embodiment, the calibration console 122 could act as an interfaceto the monitoring console 140. The calibration of the metering systemcould be performed on the monitoring console 140 using the calibrationconsole 122 as a remote connection to the calibration console 122, bututilizing the processing capabilities of the monitoring console 140 toperform the necessary processes and calculations. This can allow theprocessing requirements of the calibration console 122 to be greatlyreduced.

The calibration console 122 can be electrically connected at the firstposition to an electrical harness 124, which may comprise a tractorharness 126, a toolbar harness 130 and an air cart harness 134. Themonitoring console 140 can also be electrically connected to theelectrical harness 124 at the second position.

In this manner, the metering system of the air cart 125 can becalibrated using the calibration console 122 located at or near themetering system and then the operation of the seeder can be monitoredand/or controlled during use by an operator from the cab of the tractor121 using the monitoring console 140. This allows different devices tobe used for the calibration console 122 and the monitoring console 140.In one embodiment, the monitoring console 140 with its additionalfunctionality to monitor and/or control the operation of the air seedermay be a more complex and/or expensive device than the calibrationconsole 122, while the calibration console 122 with its more limitedfunctional requirements can be a simpler and/or less expensive device.

The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided toenable any person skilled in the art to make or use the presentinvention. Various modifications to those embodiments will be readilyapparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles definedherein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from thespirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is notintended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to beaccorded the full scope consistent with the claims, wherein reference toan element in the singular, such as by use of the article “a” or “an” isnot intended to mean “one and only one” unless specifically so stated,but rather “one or more”. All structural and functional equivalents tothe elements of the various embodiments described throughout thedisclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinaryskill in the art are intended to be encompassed by the elements of theclaims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicatedto the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitlyrecited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed under theprovisions of 35 USC 112, sixth paragraph, unless the element isexpressly recited using the phrase “means for” or “step for”.

1. A calibration device for calibrating a metering system that dispensesa product to a seeder towed by a farm vehicle to obtain and maintain adesired application rate of the product from the seeder into or on theground, comprising: an electrical harness that electrically connects thefarm vehicle, the seeder and the metering system, said electricalharness having a first console port at a first position, the firstposition at or near the farm vehicle and a second console port locatedat a second position, the second position at or near the meteringsystem; and at least one calibration console having an input device anda microprocessor operative to calculate the application rate of theproduct based on the weight of a unit of product; whereby the at leastone calibration console is connected into the second console port whenthe weight of the unit of product is being measured and inputted intothe calibration console via the input device to calculate theapplication rate of the product and adjust the metering systemaccordingly and the at least one calibration console can then beconnected into the first port when operating the farm vehicle to ensurethe rate of product application is maintained during the course ofseeding.
 2. The calibration device as claimed in claim 1 comprising twocalibration consoles, a first calibration console plugged into the firstcalibration port and a second calibration console plugged into thesecond calibration port.
 3. The calibration device as claimed in claim 1wherein the at least one calibration console is removably connectable tothe first console port and the second console port.
 4. The calibrationdevice as claimed in claim 3 comprising only one calibration consolewhich can be moved by the operator and connected to either the firstconsole port or the second console port.
 5. The calibration device asclaimed in claim 1 wherein the second position is in a cab of the farmvehicle.